Mazatlan Post Race

With the race over I was finally ready to really kick back. The whole trip we were joking about a few things, this white castle with night clubs and these golf cart taxis that were everywhere (some of which had rims and blasted music). So with the race out of the way we had a few things that we needed to take care of. I went out with my new friends Kelsey and Kate and we took a golf cart over to the newer part of Mazatlan to meet up with my friends from the Riptide tri team. The golf cart had rims and music so it was a sign that it was going to be a good night. We met up at Senor Frogs and started to have a good time. Our friends from riptide were staying at a hotel that had free drinks and food so I became Matt Balzer from room 230 for the night so that I could get a wrist band to access this amazing place. We did our best to make the hotel sorry for offering such a deal then we went out to explore the castle. We were distracted by this bar called Joe's that was playing 80s music for a little while but eventually made our way to the castle. We decided that since we were there for the race that we could bypass the lines and get in for free and somehow this worked. Apparently we were a big deal there. Somehow we found the energy to dance for awhile and it was a great night. Definitely one of the best nights that I have had after a race and I would like to thank everyone that was there for such a great time. After I finally unpack my bag I will post some pictures...

Mazatlan Race Recap

It would have been hard to not improve upon my last race but all in all this was a step in the right direction. I had a great few days leading up the race and even though I have had several weeks of pretty intense training I was feeling fast and just excited to race. We found out the night before the race that the race was going to be pushed back an hour which I was a little disappointed about because it was HOT down there. The later start also allowed for the wind to pick up. I had the same breakfast that I had every morning while there pancakes (which were probably the best pancakes I have ever had), eggs, coffee, and orange juice for about $6. The food in Mazatlan was really cheap and really good which is probably another reason why I liked it there. After breakfast I made my way down to the race start, set up my transition and headed to the water to warm up. By this time the wind was pretty strong and I realized while warming up that the water was really really choppy especially heading out to the first buoy which was about 300m off shore. Before the start I made sure to line up with Cameron Dye and John Dahlz because we were hoping to get out to a fast start to break away. With the mad dash to the water I was pushed over by the two Mexican athletes next to me and ended up getting in the way of my friend Matt Balzer. Fortunately I was able to get in a few good dolphin dives after entering the water and was out in the front pack quickly. After the first lap we had a group of about 4 and upon entering the water for the second time I went out in front to push the pace going directly into the chop to hopefully get a little bigger lead. I came out of the water in 3rd and we had a sizeable lead. I had a really really slow transition and missed Cameron's wheel coming out of transition and he just hammered the bike right away and he was gone. My bike pack started with 5 and turned into 3 quickly but we couldn't make up anytime on Cameron. Serrano from Mexico and I were able to really push the last few laps of the bike and were able to get over a minute lead on our chase pack but still not any time over Cam who actually put time on us. Going out onto the run I was definitely feeling the hard swim and the hard bike effort and my legs were really heavy. I hung in for the first 5k and was in 3rd but was starting to get run down but guys from the second pack. The better runners from the second pack caught me and I was trying to hold on but didn't have anything left and by the time I got to the last lap I was pretty toasted. I finished the race in 11th position which is not exactly what I was hoping to be able to do. I have been putting a lot of emphasis on my run and it didn't really show up at this race and I am hoping that is due to the fatigue load that I was carrying into the race. The race was still a good learning experience and with my swim and bike I was able to put myself in the exact position where I wanted to be; it is just clear that I am still trying to learn how to run.

Mazatlan pre-race

I got into Mazatlan Mexico today and I am happy to say that this day of travel was SO much easier than my travel was to Ecuador a few weeks ago. Instead of the 18 hour day of travel I had my last trip I was able to fly out, unpack, swim, run, and relax and watch some first round action of March Madness all in the same day. (my dad is enjoying his time as well already; I bought two gallons of water at a market and he bought about a gallon of beer). A lot better start to my trip than arguing with someone in Spanish in the middle of the street at 3am trying to get a hotel room. I am excited to finally be getting into the racing season after the past few months of winter training and I hope that all the work that I have put in will pay of in some results. Now comes the worst part of traveling to any race and that is the anticipation of the race to come...post race report to follow soon!!

First Blog!

I have finally caved and was pressured into creating a blog. So welcome to my blog site. I guess it was a big day for me as far as the internet world is considered. With the help of my coach John Hansen and Bruce Hendler from Athleticamps I now have a website as well which can be found at

http://www.athleticamps.com/cycling/about_us/leto

As far as my triathlon training has been going I have been putting in a lot of work this off season to build upon my first year as a pro. I was able to have a strong enough season to be honored USAT's Rookie of the Year after 2009 which was a huge honor for me in my first season. I can't even compare where my training was last year to where I am now and there was no way that I would be where I am without training with my friends in the area. Specifically John Dahlz, Andrew Bauer, and Ken Rakestraw. I have a few big races coming up soon the first of which is the ITU race in Mazatlan Mexico. I will be following that race with my first 70.3 race in Oceanside, CA.